Docu Center Ramstein
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Dokumentations- und Ausstellungszentrum zur Geschichte der US-Amerikaner in Rheinland-Pfalz | |
 Docu Center Ramstein | |
 | |
| Established | 2007 |
|---|---|
| Location | Schernauer Straße 46, 66877 Ramstein-Miesenbach, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany |
| Type | Documentation centre and contemporary history museum |
| Key holdings | Historic guardhouse; archives; photo collections |
| Collection size | History of the U.S. military in Rhineland-Palatinate |
| Founder | Municipality of Ramstein-Miesenbach |
| Owner | Docu Center Ramstein (supported by the Rhineland-Palatinate state government) |
| Website | www |
The Center for Documentation and Exhibition of the History of US Americans in the Rhineland Palatinate, or Docu Center Ramstein (DCR) for short, is dedicated to the scientific analysis and communication of the presence of the US military in Rhineland-Palatinate, particularly in the district of Kaiserslautern. In September 2025, the DCR was honoured with the ‘Museum of the Month’ award by the Rhineland-Palatinate Ministry for Family, Women, Culture and Integration.[1]
On 7 November 2007, the Ramstein-Miesenbach municipal council unanimously approved the establishment of the DCR. Since then, documents, objects and information have been collected and scientifically evaluated here. The state government of Rhineland-Palatinate provided financial and conceptual support for the establishment of the facility. In 2013, a container village was opened at Schernauer Straße 46 in Ramstein-Miesenbach, where a permanent exhibition and regularly changing special exhibitions are presented.[2]
Archives
The Docu Centre collects all materials and further information on the history of Americans in Rhineland-Palatinate in several archives. These are available to both researchers and the general public for research purposes.
- The chronologically organised newspaper archive contains articles and press releases from regional and national newspapers and magazines. One focus is on newspapers from US American locations such as Worms, Sembach and Kaiserslautern.
- The location archive contains information on the history of all existing and abandoned US American military bases in Rhineland-Palatinate.
- The library holds academic literature on the history of Americans in Rhineland-Palatinate.
- The photo archive contains professional and private photographs of everyday life and official events involving Americans and German-American coexistence.
- The contemporary witness archive collects memories and reports from contemporary witnesses in the form of audio and film recordings of interviews.[3]
Collections
The Docu Centre's collections contain objects that provide insights into the history of Americans in Rhineland-Palatinate. These include ammunition boxes, signs, uniforms and pins. The largest object is the guardhouse, which is part of the permanent exhibition. Of the more than 4,450 objects recorded, more than 1,550 are generally available on the Internet on the museum portal museum-digital.de.[4]
